Top 5 stories on summitdaily.com week of July 8

Riders compete in the Breck Epic, a small but popular multi-day mountain biking race through Breckenridge’s backcountry. Mike McCormack, founder of the race, said Tuesday he has decided to end talks with Ironman about selling the race.Special to the Daily / Liam Doran via Breck Epic

Editor’s note: Social Calls is compiled from comments on stories posted to the Summit Daily’s Facebook page.

“Good on you Mike. Not many understand what comes with that decision, continued long hours, risk, etc. I would have understood either decision, but I like the one you made.” — Scott Wescott on “Sorry Ironman, Breck Epic will stay ‘true,’ founder says

“I have personally experienced what happened to Leadville MTB 100 after Ken sold it to Lifetime Fitness. My heads off to you Mike McCormack as believe this was a difficult one!!!” — Thomas Konecny on “Sorry Ironman, Breck Epic will stay ‘true,’ founder says

“We called them Tony and Dali Llama. Coined by someone else. Loved seeing them while vacationing.” — Kathryn Johnston Duprie on “New Mexico becomes home for two Summit County llamas”

“My husband and I are Spanish teachers in Summit with two kids. For us the cost of living is huge, specially if you come here with little kids. Otherwise we have been lucky to find a great community of parents and people who always have helped us.” — Victoria del Olmo on “Summit School District ranked second in highest cost of living in the state, only behind Aspen”

“It is alarming how chaulky the trails already are on the divide. A really good monsoon is needed. But this looks alot like the dry spell between ‘02-’04.” — Adam Shaw on “Summit County and Colorado approaching record drought conditions”

Editor’s note: Stories in this list received the most page views on SummitDaily.com for the past week.

Two mountain goats were shot and killed July 3, just over a half mile from the summit of Quandary Peak. Colorado Parks and Wildlife swiftly sent out a notice asking the community for any information related to the shootings. The two young male “billy” mountain goats, estimated to be between 1-2 years old, were shot in the head with a pistol at close range.

“We ask that anyone who was near the summit of Quandary Peak Tuesday help us locate those responsible for this egregious poaching,” said Tom Davies, District Wildlife Manager with CPW. “Killing a mountain goat in this manner is a felony, and these poachers can face jail time, license suspensions and fines that can reach over $20,000 per animal.”

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The investigation into the poaching of two mountain goats on Quandary Peak trail continued as Colorado Parks & Wildlife launched a criminal investigation and began sifting through tips from the public. Quandary Peak is one of the most visited 14ers in the state and CPW officials hope the increased holiday traffic means more opportunities for clues or leads about any suspicious or unusual activity. The notice of the shooting prompted outrage from the community, and donations began pouring into Operation Game Thief, the agency’s program that rewards people who turn in poachers. The reward was subsequently increased from $1,000 to $5,000 on July 11.

The founder of the Breck Epic mountain bike race decided against selling the popular race to Ironman in favor of “preserving the experience” he helped create. Mike McCormack informed Breckenridge Town Council last Tuesday that he’s ended all talks of selling, saying he’s noticed a massive increase in congestion across Breckenridge over recent years, and that conservation is important to him. He said he doesn’t think the course can handle as many riders as Ironman might put on it. For McCormack, telling Ironman thanks, but no thanks came down to following his “moral North Star.”

“It’s important to do the right thing, and I think that the right thing is to just take a pass right now,” he said.

Several people have been arrested in two Colorado wildfires that burned homes after ignoring local and federal restrictions on campfires, target shooting and other activities aimed at combating and avoiding explosive blazes across the region. Investigators announced that three people were arrested on suspicion of starting a campfire and leaving it unattended in Colorado’s south-central mountains, sparking a blaze that destroyed at least eight homes. It comes a week after a man was arrested on suspicion of starting the state’s third-largest wildfire in recorded history by not fully extinguishing an illegal fire pit. And flames sparked in ski country also have led authorities to issue arrest warrants for two people at a shooting range accused of using tracer ammunition.

A man who went missing while hiking Buffalo Mountain last Monday afternoon was found the next Tuesday afternoon after an extensive search. The 74-year-old man, from Texas, went for a hike at 7 a.m. and was expected back home by his wife by mid-morning. However, when he did not return and failed to answer texts, his wife dialed 9-1-1 and he was declared missing at 4 p.m. Search attempts made overnight were unsuccessful, but the man was finally rescued late in the morning after hikers nearby heard him yelling from an avalanche chute on the north side of Buffalo Mountain. The Summit County Rescue Group reached the man with medical personnel, and aside from serious dehydration and a few cuts and bruises, he was unharmed.

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